The invention concerns a multimedia unit with a removable operating section for a vehicle. The multimedia unit controls and operates functional components for different media and is designed to be permanently installed in the instrument panel of a vehicle. One entertainment electronics component, such as a car radio with or without an audio player for example, is combined with at least one component for mobile telecommunication and/or traffic telematics. In this document one functional component for mobile telecommunication is a radio telephone for every type of mobile and cellular radio networks with or without devices for transmitting and receiving text and/or graphic data such as telefax, e-mail and other data. By contrast the components for traffic telematics enable the interactive traffic guidance of the vehicle, for example route guidance with means for determining location and speed, and for traffic reports. Furthermore the traffic telematics automatically call for help in emergency situations. The telematics component for example uses the known Global Positioning System (GPS).
In this case the xe2x80x9cfunctional componentxe2x80x9d concept denotes functional switching elements of the multimedia unit which are required to use a medium such as the radio telephone. Several functional components can then be combined in a mechanical unit, for example a circuit board or even an integrated circuit. A functional component can also contain separate functional switching elements in different housings.
In addition to a car radio, progress in the development of radio telephones and telematics allows other single devices or equipment parts for use of the new media to be permanently installation in automobiles. For reasons of traffic safety and because it is also technically required by advanced equipment features, mobile telephones are often hard-wired as a car telephone in a vehicle. This enables the joint usage of both strong sound reproduction during hands-free telephoning and the supply of vehicle power to raise the transmitting power. In addition the peripheral elements needed in the vehicle, such as car antennas, handset and the device for hands-free telephoning can be connected to the car telephone without any problems.
Since telematics require a GPS receiver, various sensors in the vehicle as well as an evaluation device for the available information, hard-wiring is also required for them. In this way additional, expensive technical equipment is installed in the vehicle and must be protected against theft like conventional car radios, and against unauthorized use in the case of radio telephones.
Patent specification EP 0 483 956 B1 (NOKIA, UK) describes a multimedia unit with a radio telephone and a cellular radio telephone. In addition to the telephone handset, the radio telephone and the car radio are integrated in a housing which can be mounted in the standard opening for conventional car radio installation. Both devices have certain circuit parts in common, such as the audio part with loudspeakers, a display for the operating conditions and the power supply. When the handset is lifted, the radio telephone switches the car radio to mute. A separate processor controls both the car radio and the cellular radio telephone. The activation elements for the car radio are located on the front of the joint housing, those of the radio telephone on the handset. Measures that protect against theft or unauthorized use are not revealed.
Conventional car radios from different manufacturers are often equipped with a removable operating section that contains activation elements for user inputs. The receiver or an integrated or connected reproduction part can only be operated through this operating section, so that if the user takes the operating section with him, the remaining part of the installation becomes useless. However the operating section is also useless by itself, so that there is little incentive for the user to remove it from the car radio after parking and take it with him.
To correct this deficiency, multimedia units are known among others from specifications DE 43 17 385 A1 (corresponds to U.S. 5,537,673, Pioneer, JP) and DE 197 41 584 A1 (Bosch, DE) wherein a car radio is protected against theft by having a removable operating section with an integrated radio telephone. I.e. in addition to the car radio""s operating elements, the operating section comprises a complete telephone circuit for a radio network, as well as a telephone module with a battery for power, a microphone, loudspeaker and antenna. In this way the operating section by itself has its own useful function for the user.
In both cases the operating sections have mechanical keys which are alternately used to select programs in the car radio and to dial the radio telephone. The operating sections therefore comprise a considerable number of keys for every operating mode, which are not needed for the respective medium function being used and have therefore no function. On the one hand this limits the utilization features to a few basic functions and/or one the other hand leads to a complicated control surface. Beyond that each operating section contains a display with its own driver, which shows the operating modes of both the car radio and the radio telephone, regardless of whether the latter is connected to the car radio. Both the operating section and the multimedia unit have their own microprocessor. The car radio only operates if both processors communicate with each other after coupling the operating section.
Since the handset is usually held vertical during telephoning, one variation according to specification DE 43 17 385 A1 shows that the rear of the operating section has another control surface with mechanical input keys, which are arranged and lettered for vertical operation. By contrast the solution according to DE 197 41 584 A1 makes this easier by arranging the letters on the keys at an angle. Beyond that in this solution the direction of the displayed characters can be switched between vertical and horizontal.
Known devices for installation into the standardized opening for a conventional car radio only have a limited surface for the keyboard. This leads to considerable limitations of the equipment features and/or to poor ability to operate, especially in the vehicle. The operating section either contains many small and hard to see individual keys, or only a few keys some of which have multiple functions and are difficult to identify. When all the components are jointly protected it is also difficult to assemble or later add to the functional components of a multimedia unit in accordance with the wishes of a vehicle buyer.
Also known are compact radio telephones which instead of the mechanical activation elements and the conventional display contain a screen with touch sensors, a so-called touch screen. This screen almost fills the entire operating section surface. The 1.5 GHz xe2x80x9cDigital Cellular Phone DP-211xe2x80x9d can be cited as an example and is produced by the JP Pioneer Company for the Japanese market (Internet document: http://www.pioneer.cojp/press/release3.html). Compared to conventional telephone functions which can be executed on a conventional digital keyboard with limited alphanumeric read-out, the touch screen also performs additional telephone functions. A menu-drive which constantly updates the read-out and activation elements, makes it possible to input the many characters required by the Japanese language, such as for example the Kanji characters, into the on-board telephone directory.
The same company also produces a type ND-K100 mounting kit for installing the compact radio telephone DP-211 on the instrument panel of a vehicle. A basic device without any further functional component, which is built into the standard opening of a conventional car radio and replaces it, makes hands-free telephoning possible in the vehicle and uses the vehicle""s power supply to charge the telephone battery. The mounting kit includes a cordless remote control which is attached to the steering wheel. When the vehicle is moving, a sensor blocks the manual activation elements of the radio telephone. If the DP-211 is located on the basic device of the vehicle, the character display switches between portrait and landscape format. Although the DP-211 radio telephone is a fully operational mobile telephone, it lacks all functions for other media. Radio reception requires a conventional car radio in a separate opening. Each device thus needs its own theft protection.
Starting with the known solutions, the object of the invention is to configure a multimedia unit for a vehicle so that it achieves good protection against theft and unauthorized use in a simple manner for any functional components equipment, and simplifies the operation of the multimedia unit.
The invention starts with a multimedia unit of functional components for different media, which comprises at least one basic device and a removable operating section. The latter has a control surface with activation elements and at least one display element for starting or displaying operating modes, and its own processor system with separate software to drive functional components. A radio telephone is integrated into he removable operating section to enable a vehicle user to take the operating section with him when he leaves the vehicle, thus protecting all the functional components against theft and unauthorized use. Irrespective of another processor system used as the main system in the basic device, the radio telephone in the operating section can be used in a mobile radio network.
The object of the invention is achieved in that the control surface of the removable operating section is a touch sensitive display which, in conjunction with the processor in the operating section and a control and display software, generates at least one interactive user surface which is adapted to the respective functional component being turned on. Each user surface essentially only has those activation and/or display elements that refer to the respective functional component being turned on.
A significant advantage of the invention therefore is that as a multi-functional control device, a single operating section not only makes it possible to operate different functional components in the vehicle, but that it even generates user surfaces whose visible appearance corresponds to that of the known functional components. On the one hand this means that in its removed condition the operating section is a fully operational radio telephone with respect to its function and external appearance, with a user surface that the user already knows from conventional devices. On the other hand, upon request the operating section""s processor generates in the vehicle a full-featured user surface for other functional components of the vehicle, which is no longer reminiscent of a telephone. For example the vehicle user does not turn on his car radio with an expanded and unfamiliar telephone keyboard, but instead he sees the familiar picture of a car radio with a clear user surface.
The processor system in the operating section can operate independently of the main system in the basic device, and in conjunction with the touch sensitive screen directly controls the telephone module with all the added features. Beyond that it controls at least indirectly the functional components of the multimedia unit being protected
To that end and according to the invention a non-volatile memory contains additional control and display software which intelligently integrates the user surfaces for any other functional component. The control and display software advantageously comprises individual software components for the corresponding functional components of the multimedia unit. This has the advantage that on the one hand only the control and display software, for which corresponding functional components are installed in the vehicle in accordance with the equipment purchased by the vehicle buyer, is installed or activated in the operating section. On the other hand after the multimedia unit is expanded, control and display software for new functional components can be installed in the existing operating section without problems by adding hardware and/or software, or the software can be updated by means of overwriting. In this way optimally configured user surfaces are always available for operating the multimedia unit. Even the generation of user surfaces for functional components which were still unknown at the time the multimedia unit was manufactured, is possible through retrofit installation.
According to another configuration of the invention the processor system has software means in the operating section, which also generate corresponding user surfaces and input dialogs for different media when the unit is removed.
According to another advantageous configuration of the invention, data communication via a wireless connection takes place between the processor system in the operating section and the main system. To that end an infrared or a radio interface can be used for example. The latter is available at least in Europe in the 2.4 GHz band under the name of xe2x80x9cBluetoothxe2x80x9d without any license for industry, science and medicine (ISM application). This enables the operating section to program and store presetting of functional components from outside of the vehicle and without being coupled to the basic device, or even interactively from another section of the vehicle. For example the travel route can easily be programmed for the traffic guidance system by a second person before the start or during the journey.
Since the mentioned radio interface has a range of about 10 meters, according to another feature of the invention the operating section of the multimedia unit can also be designed as a remote control transmitter for additional functions in connection with a vehicle. For example such additional functions can be activating the door and trunk locks in vehicles, activating/deactivating the theft protection, turning on the vehicle lights, brake lights and such for testing from the outside, or activating garage doors. This provides high security for the theft protection, because an interactive data exchange takes place before the respective function is activated between the basic device and the operating section, and a highly secure code system is used for reciprocal identification.